Why doesn't light go faster than it does?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the reasons why light does not travel faster than its established speed. Participants explore concepts related to mass, wave propagation, and the implications of relativity. The scope includes theoretical explanations and conceptual clarifications regarding the nature of light and electromagnetic waves.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Technical explanation, Conceptual clarification, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions why light, having no mass, cannot achieve infinite speed.
  • Another participant suggests that the properties of permittivity and permeability are fundamental in determining the speed of electromagnetic waves.
  • A participant humorously challenges others to write a wave equation that allows for infinite speed.
  • Some participants assert that light is a special case, emphasizing that its speed cannot exceed its current value due to principles of relativity.
  • It is noted that not only light but also other fundamental interactions, such as gravity and nuclear forces, travel at the speed of light, as referenced by another participant.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the nature of light's speed and the implications of relativity. There is no consensus on the underlying reasons for the limitations on light's speed.

Contextual Notes

Some claims depend on specific definitions of mass and speed, and the discussion does not resolve the mathematical or conceptual steps leading to the conclusions about light's speed.

Meatbot
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If it has no mass, what stops it from going arbitrarily fast? Why doesn't it have infinite speed?
 
Science news on Phys.org
Permittivity & permeability properties determine e.m. wave speed.
 
Check out [post=1556816]this excellent post[/post] on the subject by rbj.
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Try writing down a wave equation where the speed of propagation is infinite :p
 
light is a special case .no mater what speed of light cannot be more than what it is.its a relativity concept.
 
nandan said:
light is a special case .no mater what speed of light cannot be more than what it is.its a relativity concept.

Actually, it's not just light - as rbj points out in the post I linked to E&M, gravity, nuclear interactions, etc. all travel at the speed of light.
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